Rocky Start
by 0.witnesses
Summary: This story starts two years after Lucas and Maya had a bad break up. Now she feels she has forgiven him and is ready to be friends again, he feels differently. "We could still be friends, not really".
1. Chapter 1

Hello to whomever wonders into this story, this is my very first fanfic. It was written as a one-shot but I can continue the story if you like it.

This is set years after Maya and Lucas had a bad break up.

Enjoy! And tell me what you think!

-AGA- xx

Disclaimer: I do not own GMW or any of its characters.

* * *

 **ROCKY STARTS. CHAPTER 1.**

* * *

I was staring at her, holding my hand carefully in the lavatory, my blood was being washed away by the light touch of the water. She was slow in her task, patient, opening my wound the slightest so it didn't hurt me, letting all blood run out. I won't lie, the cut was deep, it hurt every time she touched it, but it didn't matter because it was her touch, she was here with me, helping me.

* * *

I won't lie, his cut was deep. I was trying my best to not hurt him, as of now he wasn't complaining. Neither of us were talking while we stood there, me cleaning his wound as he watched me in my task. How did I end up in here with him? This was all my mom's fault, what kind of comment was that? Is she crazy? Now I was stucked in the bathroom upstairs with my ex. I couldn't see him but I could feel his eyes on me, he also had a slight smirk, that one that I could never resist. His stare felt like fire in my body, he wasn't even trying to hide it, all these years later and he still had the same effect in me.

* * *

She was tense I could see it, but I couldn't stare away, I finally had her next to me again. Her blonde hair falling over to her side, barely touching the surface of the lavatory. Maybe I could give another step, be closer to her. No, Lucas don't do it. Think about something else, but how can I do that with her smell flooding my nose, fogging my senses.

"I think there won't be any more blood" she said suddenly, bringing me back from my thoughts. She grabbed a cotton cloth and put it over my cut "press this while I get the spray and the band aid"

I did as she said in silence, watching every move she made, remembering every freckle, every wrinkle in her face, taking it all in before this dream comes to an end. She opened a drawer she easily found what she wanted.

* * *

First drawer on the right, that's where we kept the first aid kit, that's where it has always been. I take the alcohol spray and a large band aid.

"What is that?" He asks pointing the spray bottle with his injured hand while the other one holds the cloth I gave him.

"Alcohol to disinfect the wound" I extended my hand asking for his, but he takes his away, shaking his head.

* * *

Memories from my childhood pop in my brain, my school nurse applying the alcohol on my scraped knee merciless, the agonizing pain that shoot to my back and ran up all the way of my spine. This was the last thing I needed.

"No, I don't need that, just put the band aid on" I tell her. She looked at me sternly and extended her hand again.

"The cut is deep, I have to put this. Come on, give me your hand" This was the most we had spoken to each other ever since the party had started and it didn't feel rushed or awkward, it felt like us.

"It's going to hurt too much, I don't need that"

* * *

Why is he always so stubborn? This happened every time we would go to dinner or picking out something to watch on Netflix, or when he was trying to 'fix' something, _'I know what I'm doing_ ' he used to say. "You were literally shot and you are complaining for a little sting?" I ask him, regretting it afterwards, that was too insensitive.

"That's... a different type of pain" he says smiling hoping it makes me laugh, instead I'm shocked and thankful he didn't take it bad.

* * *

She doesn't laugh, but I swear her lips curl a little when she puts a strand of hair behind her ear.

"I'll be careful, I promise" she looks right at my eyes, I froze right there and then, her blues eyes were like a nebula telling me the story of her thoughts. I hadn't read into those eyes for several years but now they were holding back, they wanted to scream but couldn't.

* * *

He is just looking at me, the hairs in my back stand up and a pressure sits on my chest. I don't want to look away, but he lowers his head sighs loudly and extends his arm to me.

"Do it quickly" he says, scared to stare now. I take his hand, remove the cotton cloth from the wound, the bleeding has stopped, I look at his face, he is looking over his shoulder waiting for the unavoidable pain that it's coming. His jaw is clenched, he shaved probably this morning before coming to my house, I can smell his cologne, the same he has always used and a faint touch of limes. I watch him carefully maybe for a second too long before getting back to my task.

* * *

It's better if I don't look, that way I won't know when it's coming. I focus on her touch, her hand holding mine, steady but gently. We are really close, I hope she doesn't notice that my hand is sweaty. She changed her shampoo, I can smell it from here. What is taking her so long? How did I end here? Maya's mom. I can feel my heart beating fast and I don't know if it's for the hand of because of her. After everything that happened, everything that was left behind, everything that was ended, how could I be so close to her again? Inches apart from the girl I first loved, from the girl I hurt so badly, the one heart I broke, the heart I left and didn't repair. Inches apart from the girl I will always love.

Then I feel it, an excruciating pain floods my thoughts, the feel of my nerves being burned by a hot knife, it goes all the way back to my spine.

* * *

He inhales sharply the moment I spray his wound, his hand is shaking. I don't remember ever using this spray except when I was a kid, but if it did hurt this bad I don't want to find out. I take his hand to my lips and blow out.

* * *

It takes me by surprise, the smoothening of a breeze. I turn to look at her, her plump lips curled together, saving me from my pain. It's cold and gentle, barely there but so refreshing.

After some seconds she puts the band aid on top, sealing my wound, no trace of pain, like a leave settling in the water.

"There you go, see... it wasn't that bad" she says lifting her head to look at me. I admire the finished work one last time before dropping my arm.

"Yeah... Thanks" I say lifting my head, I stare at her, her hair framing her face, I maintain her eye contact, I just want to see her blue eyes for the rest of my life. Why did I let her go? I see through her sapphire eyes, I see her, like I always have. I know, for the first time today, what she is thinking, because it's the same thing I have in my head.

* * *

We are inches apart, our eyes glued to each other, my heart threatening to come out of my chest. He is here, alive, the guy I swore I would never forgive but eventually did, my first love. Am I leaning in? I don't know, everything seems frozen in time.

* * *

I'm taken over by something inside me and I close the space between us. I press my lips into hers and then I feel like I'm falling, hard. She reciprocates, the kiss is not fierce, but is not gentle either. My hand is in her cheek tangled with her hair, the other one is low in her back, she rests her hands in my chest. We start to pick up the pace of the kiss, my tongue asks for permission to enter her mouth and she gladly responds. We move against the bathroom table, I lift her legs so she can sit on top, she pulls me closer to her, playing with my hair.

Her lips, her smell, her skin, how I missed everything about her. While we are here, our bodies pressed together, everything else seems so far away. I feel like we are 18 once again, I pass my hands around her sides lifting her top the slightest, just so my fingertips touch her skin. All these years that are between us disappear, all those fights, all the distance is closed.

* * *

I can't think straight, he feels, this feels so good right now. It's like not a day has passed since we were together. He sucks on my neck, a moan threatens to escape my lips. I shouldn't be doing this, how can I just forgive like that, why can't I stay mad at him forever, that is what I want. Something inside me won't stop, I pull him up so he kisses me again and again and again, his arousal pressed against my thigh, he let's go a low groan when I shift my position.

I'm crazy, something is seriously wrong with me, I tell myself, but how can something that feels so good be bad? How can I still love him like some stupid teenager that started to believe our relationship would last forever. But I do, I love him, but I can't be with him, I can't allow myself to go through that again.

* * *

God, I love her. I want her, she is the one for me and I knew it long ago, but too late or maybe it is not too late to salvage the best thing that has ever happened to me.

Her legs are around my waist, we are tangled together like magnets, unbreakable. For a second this feels like it might be the last time we do this and fear settles inside me, I can't think about that. My hands find themselves dangerously cupping her ass, her fingertips trail the waistline of my jeans.

"Maya! Did you find the band aids?" Her mom screams from downstairs. And like an elastic band that has stretched too much, we break apart, like some kids who were caught doing something wrong. We are breathing heavy, she drops her legs and gently pushes me away. I don't want to leave, _'let's ignore them'_ I think of telling her, but it is too late now, she has slipped through my fingers once again.

"Yes mom, we are coming down!" She responds, getting down of the table and fixing herself in front of the mirror. I look for her eyes, for a sign that what we did wasn't bad, instead she averts my sight. "We should go back to the party" she says by the door.

"Yeah" I tell her and she leaves. My heart slowly sinking in my chest, the pain returning to my hand.

* * *

Remember to tell me what you think! Comment and like! If you like.


	2. Chapter 2

Hello! I'm officially going to continue this story, don't expect a new chapter every week, I'm in college and sometimes I'm very busy. I've also moved the story to M, for language and who knows what else is to come.

Remember to like and comment what you think!

-AGA-xx

Disclaimer: I don't own GMW or any of its characters.

* * *

 **ROCKY START. CHAPTER 2.**

* * *

Seconds after pressing the doorbell, she answered the door. I looked down to contemplate every inch of her. Her long, pale legs that went up to a short skirt that covered just enough, attached to a black top that left her shoulders uncovered and molded her figure in the right places, golden strands of hair fell to her sides. Was she wearing that on purpose? She looked at me, our eyes connected and I froze right there, it felt like the ground was pulling my feet, her blue marbles were beautiful and hypnotizing. I saw my girlfriend in front of me, like we hadn't aged one single day, then I noticed a sudden change in her eyes, it was faint but there, her stare hardened and I felt ashamed, I couldn't see her anymore.

"Hi..." I finally brought myself to say, she was still looking at me.

"Hi..." she said, gaining my attention again, her voice felt like lightning in my body and for a second, just for a second I thought about lifting her in my arms and kissing her until we were craving for air, but that thought disappeared when she moved to one side of the frame "umm... you should come in."

* * *

He passed next to me, my body tensed when I smelled his cologne. I shut the door after him and led the way to the party. Farkle was in the center unwrapping Zay's gift, several boxes were scattered in the floor, Zay had a grin in his face and Riley was just as amused. When I came in with Lucas behind me, everyone in the room shifted their gaze towards us. When the birthday boy finally saw us he dropped the now smaller box on the coffee table and stood up to greet us.

"Lucas!" He came jogging, Lucas had put the ice bag on the floor and the two hugged like they hadn't seen each other in months "it's so good to have you here, thanks for coming!"

"All for you man" Lucas said grinning, with that beautiful and honest smile he had. "Here, I got you this". Farkle took the small box from him and opened it, inside was a silver watch, it looked like it was an old model, it wasn't a normal watch it had something different but I didn't know what it was.

"Is this what I think it is?" Farkle asked with a gleam in his eyes.

"Yep, I looked in every antique shop in New York for it, but I finally found it..." He was going to say something else, but Farkle interrupted to give his best friend another hug. Lucas patted his back "well, I'm glad you like it."

"Wait, I don't understand, what is that?" I had to ask Farkle for an explanation.

"This is a _Silverstar_ Watch, a New York company made 200 of these back in 1989..."

"They function with magnets so wherever you go it always has the right time..." Lucas finished explaining very proud and excited, looking at me, he then cleaned his throat and looked away and so did I. Riley came to my rescue almost immediately, she said hello to Lucas and grabbed Farkle by the arm. Zay came by a moment later.

Farkle looked around him "This is the best gift you could all have given me, to be here with all of you" I could feel Lucas's eyes on me, but I fought the urge to look back. "Thanks, guys" he finished.

"Awwwwwwwwww" said Riley, planting a kiss in Farkle's cheek. "Come on, you have to finish opening Zay's present"

"Oh, yeah" they both turned around and headed to the couch in front of the table with the yellow box over it. "Lucas, are you coming?"

"Yes, I'm going to put this in the fridge before it melts" and with that he walked away from the living room, taking the giant ice pack with him.

* * *

I knew this place like my own house, so getting to the kitchen was no problem, I opened the freezer and stuck the ice bag in an empty place.

"Hi Lucas" I heard someone said behind me. I jumped and turned around to see Maya's mom sitting in the counter reading some magazine. "Oh, I'm so sorry, that's the second time I've done that today."

"It's fine, you just caught me by surprise Ms. Hart" she stood up from the stool and hugged me tight.

"You look great, I hadn't seen you since the hospital. How are you?"

"I'm good, I'm good, I do therapy three times a week and I should finish this month." She was smiling, but her eyes were concerned.

"I'm glad, now return to the party before Farkle starts looking for you everywhere" she gently patted my back.

When I was passing through the kitchen door I suddenly stopped. Feeling an urge to ask her. "How is she?" escaped from my mouth, she returned her gaze to me and studied it calmly.

"It will take time" was the only thing she said before returning to her task. I nodded and left the kitchen.

Farkle and Riley were struggling to open one of the boxes that was wrapped in plastic, a mess surrounded them, Zay was watching the two of them with a very happy look in his face talking with Maya. This was the thing I dreaded the most, what was I supposed to do now, I couldn't just go and pretend we were still the same eight graders who sat in Topanga's. We were a broken group and it was my fault. I sat on the chair next to the couch Riley and Farkle were sited on.

* * *

I looked at him, sitting across from me, a tension settled between us, oblivious to the rest of the group.

"Oh! I got it, I got it!" Riley screamed, she had an envelope in her hand as she raised it over her head. She delivered the envelope to Farkle and he took two tickets out of it.

"Tickets for Pippin!" Farkle started laughing.

"Wait!" Riley said "all that trouble for a couple of tickets?" Zay let out a vulgar laugh that made everyone join in.

As more people filled the house, the music and noise became louder. Lucas had been careful to keep his distance, but I caught him staring at me a few times.

"How are you holding, it hasn't been that bad has it?" Riley asked me, resting her hands on my shoulder.

"No... It's just weird trying to act like nothing happened."

"But Maya, something did happen, if you pretend like it didn't you won't move on." I stayed silent looking at Lucas on the other side of the room. "You can't hate him forever."

"I don't."

"What?" she asked, turning her head towards me.

"I don't hate him, and that is why this is so difficult, it would be so much easier to hate him and ignore him forever, but I can't."

She was cut by Farkle who came and joined Riley's side, Zay and Lucas followed behind him. Riley gave me one of her glances, the one that meant 'Think about what I said' or maybe it said 'We will talk about this later' or maybe both.

"Guys, can you help me in the kitchen" my mom said from the door. We all walked to the kitchen, several foil platters were set on the counter, filled with the food Riley had brought. "I need you to take these outside, I will be leaving soon." One by one Zay, Riley and Farkle grabbed a platter each and left the kitchen. "Honey can you put the chips on the big bowl? Oh, and Lucas can you cut these limes in slices?" Lucas grabbed a knife and started to cut them up.

I looked up to the drawers thinking where we kept the big bowl, I opened the bottom one but no sign of the bowl could be seen. Damn it, it most be in the top one. I reached for the handle with my fingertips, barely reaching it, but there it was, the big flowered bowl my mom loved.

* * *

I could hear her heels clicking on the floor and I smiled to myself knowing she couldn't get to the top cabinet, she sighed in frustration, but I knew her far too well, she was too proud to ask for my help. Without thinking I cleaned my hands on a towel, turned around and reached up to get the bowl, suddenly I realized what I had done.

* * *

I felt his body behind me as he grabbed the bowl over me, every muscle in my body tensed. He smelled like limes, I turned to face him, but he barely moved. The intensity in his eyes was pulling me out of reality, taking me 3 years back.

"I hope I wasn't interrupting" my mom said from the door, Lucas cleared his throat and backed away, handing me the bowl.

"No, mom, Lucas was just helping me reach for the bowl."

"Clearly..." She said and I threw her a look. Lucas continued on his task as I opened the bag of chips and placed them on the bowl. The smell of lime still in my nose. "I'm warning you, I don't want anyone sneaking into the house in the middle of the night while I'm gone."

Three things happened at the same time after that. My "Mom!", the knife hitting the cutting table and Lucas's "Fuck."

My mom and I turned to see him, suddenly blood started to come out of his hand, he quickly moved to the sink and put his hand under the water. My mom was quick too, she grabbed some paper towels and put them over the cut, the paper immediately started to turn red.

"Maya, take Lucas to my bathroom and clean his wound."

* * *

I hoped you liked it! Comment and like, if you like!


	3. Chapter 3

Hello again, thanks for following the story! I've gotten nice messages and I'm glad you like it!

I hope you noticed the story is going backwards, we will get to the break up eventually but a lot can happen in three years, tell me why do think they broke up or what detail do you wish to know first. Anyway, this chapter is coming early because I had time after some busy days.

As always I hope you enjoy the story and comment, review, like... do your thing and I'll keep writing!

-AGA-xx

* * *

 **ROCKY START. CHAPTER 3**

* * *

The day had started like any other would, me sprawled in my bed, half still dreaming, the other half waiting for the call of sunshine. And no, not the sunshine that would creep through the window, but Riley, my sunshine. Today I hope she forgets, I just want to stay in bed all day, have my mom bring me food and draw in my sketchbook, to stay in the safety of my sheets. I look at the clock, 9:46am, it's already late for her call, I sigh of relief and close my eyes again, cover myself to my neck and drift away. Not a minute after that, my phone starts buzzing, an annoyed groan leaves me. I manage to grab the cellphone and stay completely covered in the bed.

"Good morning sunshine!" I greeted as I always have every day for who knows how long.

"Peaches!" She said in her sweet voice "Do you think I should wear the white laced dress or the green one with the flowers I like? Because Farkle likes the white one better and it's his birthday after all..." She rambled on, getting flustered.

"Riley, honey, the party is not until 1p.m, I could be sleeping right now. But wear the yellow one with flowers he also likes"

"Ohhh yes! I love that dress! But with what..."

"The brown sandals" I interrupted her.

"Thank you peaches!" She finally said, sighing with relief on the other side of the line "Sorry for waking you, I thought you promised your mom you would go and pick up the cupcakes."

Shit, I jump off the bed, and stumble around the room taking a shirt from my closet and a pair of jeans that have been in the floor for a couple of days. My mom told me a thousand times to remember, to be fair I had more important things in my mind.

"Riley, I gotta..."

"Pick the cupcakes you forgot" she interrupts me this time.

"Yes!"

"Okay, be safe, love you!"

"Me too, see you later!" I finished the call on the first floor, grabbing my keys from the bowl and my purse.

* * *

It was almost 10 when I came back from therapy, all covered in sweat from the session, but I had stopped showering on the center, preferring the privacy of my own house. Well, it was my parent's apartment, but my room hadn't been touched since I moved to campus.

I shaved, quick but careful in my task, I didn't want to stand in front of the mirror for a second more than necessary. I knew I had to live with this scar for the rest of my life, but it was too soon and I couldn't look at myself without a shirt on.

When I came out of the bathroom I found a sticky note on my desk with my mom's handwriting. ' _Went to do my hair, do the dishes and sweep the floor of the kitchen before you leave. XX'_

* * *

I came back with the boxes filled with cupcakes, they were vanilla with caramel in the middle and decorated as chemical elements (even though he was turning 21), it had become an inside joke between the small group of friends. Ah crap, I didn't want to think about him, he had creeped into my thoughts as always. Today was the first time I would socialize with Lucas again, he wasn't here to celebrate the previous birthdays, or christmases or halloweens. He had made sure to keep his distance and I had made it very clear that I never wanted to see him again. Here we are now, three years later, we had moved on and here we are, pretending we are friends again. A part of me really wants to try but it has become a constant battle in my brain, deciding if I want to forgive him or if hating him forever is much easier.

"You forgot the cupcakes, even after I reminded you a hundred times yesterday" my mom said entering the kitchen.

"Who said I forgot? I have them right here" I responded placing the heavy boxes on the counter. She looked at me with a raised brow.

"I need more glitter!" Riley's faint voice came from the backyard, my mom and I looked at each other, eyes open in bewilderment. When we got there she was looking at a table, already covered in green glitter. The rest of the place looked amazing, tables were settled, balloons were inflated, decorations were hanged.

"Riles everything looks great, put down the glitter, it's perfect" I tell her taking the bag of glitter carefully as if she was holding a weapon. Riley and crafts were a deadly combination, we all still remembered the _'Purple glitter accident'_ that happened on our senior year. By graduation we could still collect a fair amount of glitter out of our bags and books.

I left the two in the kitchen, they were setting the cupcakes on platters and the rest of the food Riley had brought was heating on the oven. I went upstairs to shower and blow dry my hair before people started coming, before he came. Sure, we had seen each other a couple of time after his accident, but those times we only spoke a few words to each other. The only reason I'm doing this is Farkle, he looked so hopeful when he asked me if it was okay to invite him, I didn't want to let him down, not when he wanted so badly to see his best friend.

* * *

I hadn't been in the room with the four of them for a very long time, I went out with Farkle and Riley and Zay at least a couple times a month, but it was never the same, we were missing a piece and we all felt it.

I was so surprised when Farkle invited me to his party, both him and Riley always tried to keep us apart, due to Maya's wish of never seeing my face again. I was tempted to decline his offer, to make Maya happy, but his voice, it killed me and I had to say I would go.

There was a knock on the front door, I finished buttoning my shirt and opened it to see a smiling Zay holding a huge birthday present.

"Dude, what are you giving Farkle?" I asked, letting him come in.

With relief he put the gigantic box on the coffee table, he turned to me and smiled deviously. "Tickets for Pippin" I lift a brow, not understanding what he meant. "Oh, that..." He pointed his gift "that's just boxes inside boxes, one of them even has rocks to make it heavy, the tickets are inside an envelope" he laughed at his own genius prank, I couldn't help but smile. "Are you ready to go?" He turned to me.

"Yeah, let me grab my gift and my car keys" I went back to my room and took the lonely present that I kept on my desk. "Let's go Zay" I said grabbing my keys from the kitchen counter and heading to the door.

The car ride was silent, Zay had put some new alternative country band that wasn't as bad as it sounded. It was a 40-minute ride until Shawn's house, the familiarity of the route scared me, but how could I forget it after driving there with Maya every weekend. When Shawn got the house from one of his step sisters, they left the city immediately, I was more devastated to know that I wouldn't walk her home anymore or knock on her window in the middle of the night, but sharing 40 minutes to one hour (when she insisted on going the long way) was even better.

"Are you ready for this?" Zay broke the silence, we were a few minutes from the house. I looked quickly at him, searching for the reason of the question. "To see her again, I mean".

I stared at the road ahead of me, thinking for an answer, but no one ever came. I stayed quiet, telling myself to keep it cool, it was just a party, other people would be there too. My throat tied up, while my heart pulsed in my ears.

"You'll be fine" Zay said patting my shoulder, as I passed the street where we used to park when I begged her not to leave just yet, inside this car we shared so many things, memories, dreams, fears, love; she is the reason I declined a new car to stay with this one. I wanted to see that nail polish stain in my carpet, that scratch in the roof, the missing '5' on the radio, her sketches inside the glove compartment, I wanted to keep that part of us alive.

* * *

I was checking my outfit in the mirror, a cute skirt Riley had lent me and a black top that bared my shoulders and collarbone. This was a nice change from the dirty jeans and paint stained shirt I was wearing in the morning, but I wouldn't change the comfiness of an oversized shirt for a pair of heels. My hair was dry; I could already hear chatter downstairs from people showing up. Someone had turned the music on and I couldn't help but feel a nervous tickling in my fingertips.

"Aww you look beautiful baby girl!" I jumped at the sound of my mom "oops, sorry I thought you heard me knock" she was standing against the door frame.

"It's fine mom, I was just..." Thinking about Lucas, I averted my mom's look, she was smiling and I knew she was reading my mind.

"You had your head in other place, I get it" she told me with her understanding eyes and soft smile, she was comforting me from the other side of the room, no more words were needed "in other place when it should be downstairs in the party."

I looked at myself one last time, yep, I was dressed to kill. I spun around and left my room behind my mom.

"Honey, Shawn is late so I'll be staying around for another hour." I didn't reply, it was actually better if she was here to protect me "we'll be back early on Monday and I expect this house to be perfect when we return".

"Yes mom" I said when she turned to me in the stair rest.

"Where is all the party people?!" Someone shouted from the entrance, it was clearly Zay, which meant Lucas was here too, my breath stopped for a second and my hands felt sweaty. "Oh, hi Ms. Hart, I thought you were gone already..." He said after my mom and I finished walking down the stairs. He was holding a big present in his hand, that looked really heavy and I couldn't help but smile at him, he looked hilarious. No Lucas by his side, maybe he backed out, maybe he couldn't bring himself to see me or maybe he was doing it for me, yeah, that sounded more like him. "I will put this somewhere... What a lovely place you have here Ms. Hart..." He trailed off.

"Thank you Zay, I hope all the party people keep it that way" she said smiling, as she walked behind him.

The doorbell rang and distracted by the previous encounter I yanked the door open at once. A tall figure was standing in front of me, he was wearing dark jeans and a light blue buttoned shirt, rolled up sleeves that marked the strong arms that wore them. He was holding a cooler and a small wrapped box on the other one. I had to look up to meet his face, green foamy eyes that were looking back at me. It was him.

* * *

That's it for today, remember to comment and like, if you like!


	4. Chapter 4

Hey guys! More than 500 people have read this story and it is CRAZY! Thank you so much for reading and sending me you messages! This chapter is coming later than I expected, but I was busy with IRL stuff. I think the next one might come next week.

Again, thanks for your support, don't forget to write your reviews, like, follow, whatever!

-AGA-XX

* * *

 **ROCKY START. CHAPTER 4**

* * *

"I don't know"

"You _don't_ know if you want to go to the party?" He looks at me, separating his pen from the notebook.

"I mean, I _do_ want to go, but at the same time, she is going to be there, what if she doesn't want me there, I bet she doesn't."

"But you still want to do this for _Minkii_?"

"Minkus." I correct him "Minkii is the plural."

"Of course it is" he says in a sarcastic tone, then he sets his notebook with the pen on the table next to him and folds his hands together over his knee. "Look, you have to stop hiding from her, I think enough time has passed for you to move on with your lives"

"I can't. You know how hard I've tried to forget her, but I can't, the guilt was eating me alive and when she finally forgave me I still couldn't close that chapter of my life. Because if I do that, if _I_ let her go...if I take everyone's advice and move on, that wouldn't be love and it wouldn't be worth fighting for and I know that what we have is."

He stays silent for a minute, analyzing my rant, I hate when he does that. "Okay Lucas, I get it. But what do _you_ have?"

I open my mouth to answer, but my mind is point blank, what _did_ we have? What do we have now? I look at my therapist, baffled, I don't know what to say, because I don't know the answer. We can't go back to just being friends, we are no good at that, we can't go back to being together, not until the water between us is clean again. We used to be in a good relationship, we had our fights and our differences, but we made it work. This is what I miss the most, having someone to carry my baggage with. Somehow, two broken people fixed each other. _Oh God_.

"I broke her" I say, almost in a whisper, looking at the wooden floor of his office.

"What was that?" He asks, searching for my eyes.

"I broke her." I repeat, louder and stare at my doctor with a bewildered look.

"Lucas..." He starts, trying to calm me down and put some sense into me, but I know I'm right.

"No!" I get up and start pacing across the room. "For the first time in her life she felt like she was whole again, with me. After her father, I thought I would fill that empty space in her heart and I just..." My voice breaks, a knot is in my neck and the stabbing pain in my chest is back. "I left her... like her dad. I'm no better than him, I thought I was saving her from me, but I fucked up."

* * *

"I don't know, Riles!"

"Are you going to tell him not to come?" She asked me from the bed.

"I don't know that either." I was doodling in my sketch book, making big lines from different points on the page, it seemed like a huge mess, I should name it _'My Life'_ by Maya Hart. "What does he even care if I'm here?"

"Maya! You know he still cares for you, a lot." She scowls me from her bed. "He wouldn't want you to be uncomfortable and neither does Farkle, that's why he asked you first."

"Well what was I supposed to say? Tell him he couldn't see his best friend for his birthday because it's awkward for me?" I snap back at her.

She lifts her shoulders and throw her hands in the air. I get it, she doesn't want to be in the middle of our mess. I know it was hard for everyone when Lucas left New York, it felt like I was keeping the custody of our children after a divorce, even Zay. After he moved back they only spent time with him a couple times a month and it was killing them being torn apart, the dynamic never felt the same.

"He can come" I sigh and close my eyes for a second.

"Really?" Riley asks, setting her computer aside and sitting on the edge of the bed.

"I'm trying to make things right... but it's hard for me to keep up with your expectations that everything will be back to normal."

"Maya, the last thing I want is for you to feel like that. We _may_ have overreacted a little when we heard you guys talked..."

"A little?" I scoff and look back at her.

"Just a splash... this is very exciting for us too. If you ever feel like it's too much for you we can lock ourselves in your bedroom and stay there until everyone leaves." I laugh, she comes to sit next to me in the bay window and hugs me. "Uhh, that's a beautiful magnolia." She says pointing at my sketch book. I look down at it, the senseless lines I was drawing turned into said flower opening its petals.

* * *

"How are your nightmares going? Are they still consistent?" I'm watching through the window of his office, people look small and insignificant from up here. I don't turn to him, my head still filled with rage, Maya is the only clear object in this hurricane of thoughts. "Lucas?" He presses. "We still have a good 36 minutes."

"Sometimes" I say coldly.

"And what do you do when you get them?" He is writing in his notebook.

"I write it down and make the breathing exercises."

"Do you think that method has worked?"

"I guess" But I don't want a temporary fix, I want them gone. My nightmares started a few days after I had left the hospital, I woke up sweating with a stabbing pain in my abdomen that didn't leave for a couple of days. It was always the same sequence, I was trapped in a store, the aisles never ended as I ran them at the top of my lungs, leaving me breathless. Suddenly, shotguns and screams sounded from different parts of the place, people in agonizing pain asking for help. Every now and then I found a body lying in the floor covered in blood, eyes wide open staring back at me. I never got to them in time to stop the bleeding. I ran until my lungs couldn't take another breath, that's when he found me, but my legs wouldn't move and without hesitating he pulled the trigger. Then I would wake up, after cleaning my face I couldn't go back to sleep, so I changed the sweat-covered sheets, I washed them, I watched T.V, studied or did homework, I would do anything to get my mind focused on something else.

"Do you ever dream about her?" he asks me, he finally catches my attention and I turn to him, he is expecting an answer.

"I do, yes. I think those are the only times that I sleep through the whole night." He nods as he writes that too. "Do you think it means anything that I dream with her?"

"Well, repetitive dreams formulate from a source of anxiety in your mind. Just like you are having the same nightmare after an accident that is very traumatic, you can have dreams about your ex-girlfriend when the break up was clearly devastating in an emotional way for you."

"It's funny, I've been dreaming with her since I was living in Texas. My friends would tell me that I just needed to take her off my head. They would drag me to clubs and bars and I would leave with a random girl. After I had sex with her, we were laying in bed and it's funny because I would go to sleep next to a woman wishing it was Maya the one who visited me that night in my dreams."

"Lucas, just like your nightmares, dreaming like this about her is not healthy and I would recommend the same exercises if you ever have them again."

"They are the only thing I have left from her, I know it's bad, but _why_ can't I let go?" I ask in desperation.

"Maybe you need to understand that there is a difference between moving on and letting go. The past is in the past, you can't fix it, you can't change it. She is giving you the opportunity to start in a fresh page, but you are refusing to do so, instead you are filling this new start with the same stains of before. Aren't you tired?"

"Yes" I manage to say, tears itching in the back of my eyes.

"Start over, when I say this, it doesn't mean that your relationship starts from zero. You can't reset that, what I mean is that this chapter is closed, you are done with it, now is up to you to start a new one."

For the first time in a long time I feel relieved, that annoying pain in my chest disappears and the nagging little noise in my head stops. I let go and tears start coming out of my eyes, without any warning everything I had holding up bursts out of me. The fog of my thoughts settles down and she is still in the middle of them, crystal clear.

* * *

"Hey why did you crumpled it up? It was great!" Riley exclaims picking the ball of paper off the ground.

"I didn't like it..." I say closing my sketchbook "the shadows were wrong." I try to justify, then I put the book and the rest of my things in my bag. Riley approaches me and hands me the crumpled paper.

"Keep it, so you can fix it, you don't want this to go away." She moves the drawing around until I take it and stuff it deep in my backpack. She smiles at me, like she just won a little game.

"I gotta go or I'll be late for the train."

"Okay" she says sadly, she throws her large arms around me and pulls me close. I laugh and hug her back. "I'll call you tomorrow, so we can talk plans for Farkle's party."

"Sure, see ya!" I say as I step out of the window of her room.

On my way to the station it felt like I was carrying an explosive in my back and if I opened it, the whole thing would take me with it. I didn't want to think about it anymore, but I had forgotten my headphones and with my luck the train was 20 minutes late, it was a 46 minute ride that I spent figuring out a story for every person in my cart, when I finally got home it was already dark outside.

"Maya? Is that you?" My mom screamed from the kitchen.

"Yes mom!" I yell back.

After that, Shawn appeared coming down the stairs.

"Hi kiddo! How was your day?" I smiled at him, this was what I had always wanted, to come home and have both parents there to receive me.

"Good, Riley and I are thinking of a place where we can throw Farkle his birthday party." I told him as we walked towards the kitchen, my mom was sitting in the set table waiting for us. I went and kissed her cheek, she smiled at me.

"And did you see Cory?" Shawn asked.

"Yes, Cory sent you a hug and he said that he misses you."

Shawn smiled and sat next to my mother. "I don't know how Topanga dealt with the two of you her whole life." I headed to the door whilst they exchanged goofy looks. "Babygirl, where are you going? Aren't you hungry?"

"No, I ate at the Mathews's house." I lied "I'm going to paint." I disappeared through the door and went directly upstairs. I was still carrying my backpack, I had to take the doubt out of my head, I had seen it before and I had an idea of where it came from but I was scared that it was true. What would it mean? Does it mean I still miss him?

I grabbed a little stool from my room and with its help I managed to reach the cord that hid the ladder to the attic. I climbed them and turned the lights on. This space of the house had become mine since I found it a little after we moved in, every time I wanted to paint I would do it here. My materials were here, Shawn had installed a huge white cover for the floor which was stained everywhere and there was a window where I sat and drew the sunsets.

There were some boxes in here as well, I opened one of the cabinets and took out a small metal box that once brought delicious homemade grandma Joy cookies. I took a deep breath and opened the box. Inside there were a lot of papers, notes we used to pass around in class, tickets to concerts we went to, letters written by him, polaroids of us happy, hugging, him carrying me on his back, our Halloween pictures, prom night, everything was here. A pressure settled in my chest as I fought the urge to cry and rip all of them, but I knew far too well I wouldn't do that. After digging in memory lane, I finally found it, it was his history book, the front and the back were filled with doodles I made in class. This was the moment, with dread I opened the book on the page where there was little separation between the pages. A brown old flower laid in the middle of the book, delicate as paper, I grabbed it and started to cry. I held in my hand the same magnolia that was crumpled in my backpack.

* * *

Thanks for reading! Don't forget to tell me what you think and like, if you like!


	5. Chapter 5

Hello, I've been trying to make this story a weekly upload, so here is the next chapter.

As always, like, follow, write a review. Thanks!

-AGA-xx

* * *

 **ROCKY START. CHAPTER 5**

* * *

Before I talked to her for the first time in 2 years I saw her once before, shortly after moving back in the city. I was staying with my parents to avoid her on purpose, you'd think that in a city this big and filled with people it would be hard to meet someone randomly in the street. It was fall, the cold winds had come sooner this year and the days were becoming shorter. After being away for so long I wanted to do everything I loved about New York, go to Joe's Pizza Place, get a croughnout from that corner in the 87th street, go for a run across Washington Bridge, watch the fall sunsets and go to Topanga's for a bulochki.

One day, returning from Billy's house I saw the small coffee shop Maya and I would go to if we skipped the last period at school. It was really nice and the food was delicious. I decided to stop by, after watering my mouth just by thinking about the carrot cake they served. When I came in, the place was packed, a long line was in front of me but I had my head set on that cake and a cup of coffee. I quickly checked around the place to see if any seat was empty and I saw her, she was in a table with some friends I didn't know, I could only see her back but I was certain it was her. What were the odds? I didn't know what to do in that moment, I was panicking. _'Should I go speak to her?'_ was what I thought, but I wasn't sure if I was ready for that. What would she do if she saw me? I couldn't do it, but at the same time I couldn't stand there and do nothing about it. After all this time she was finally at my reach and I couldn't talk to her, I wouldn't know what to say.

"Sir? Excuse me, sir?" I turned gaze away from Maya to the cashier lady in front of me, apparently I had advance to the head of the line. "What are you having?"

It took me a few seconds to understand what she wanted. "Oh, sorry... Umm... Can you give me a cup of black coffee with one sugar and umm... A carrot cake to go."

"Sure" I looked at Maya again, I had to do something, I could go to her and just say hi, let her know I'm back in the city, I mean it's been two years. No, I'm crazy. "Anything else?"

"No..." I tell the cashier. "Wait... Uh do you still serve the pecan pie with the white chocolate sauce?"

"Yes, we do" she answers me. This was Maya's favorite pie, she would tell me about it nonstop until I would bring her here or take her a slice to her house.

"Great, can you prepare me a slice? But it is for that blonde girl over there, can you take it to her?"

"Okay... Is that all?"

"Yes, can you give me a napkin?" She very nicely hands me the piece of paper.

"That'll be $17.32." I give her a 20 and tell her to keep the change, I write a note for the cake while I wait my order. Another woman comes with a brown bag and a plate with the pecan pie on the other hand.

"Here you go sir" she gives me the bag "I was told the pie was a special delivery" she smiles playfully at me.

"Yeah, can you go give it to the blonde who is sitting in that table over there?" I point towards Maya and look at the employee to make sure she knows who I'm talking about.

"Of course" she gladly replies.

"Also this note..." I hand her the paper, she is about to leave but I stop her. "Oh, if she asks don't tell her who it came from. Thank you so much."

"Sure thing, sweetie." She slowly walks away heading to Maya's table as I make my way out of the place and disappear in the crowded street.

* * *

Fall was creeping around the city and I loved it. I could wear my big sweaters again, boots and to be honest I didn't need to shave my legs as often. The trees were getting naked and we were assigned to draw fall leaves and flowers for my workshop. Me and my friends had a tour around different parks, collecting leaves, taking pictures of the trees and flowers around us. We ended our little field trip with empty bellies and I knew a great spot just a block away, this was my favorite coffee shop. I just couldn't tell Topanga, still I had only come here with one person, it was our little secret spot.

We discovered it our sophomore year, Brandon had cheated on me and I had found out that day and I felt too angry to go back to class, but of course Ranger Rick followed me and told me he couldn't let me leave alone. We walked senselessly for hours, he carried my bag the whole time, then when the sun began to come down I complained that I was hungry and we entered this small coffee shop that was just ahead. The next day Brandon came in with a swollen eye, he apologized and never talked to me again, I knew it had been Lucas. That day I found out he still had feelings for me and I realized I did too.

Afterwards it became our thing, every time I was tired or just sick of school he would bring me here or every day he felt like exploding I invited him to that spongy carrot cake he loved. When we fought he would bring me my favorite or when I was in bed suffering with monthly cramps he would sneak in with a chocolate cupcake in his hand and stay with me to watch a movie or catch me up with that day's assignment.

Me and the girls entered the place and luckily found a table near the window so I could watch the city change colors when the sun sat. We ordered our coffees and then we read and reread the menu to figure out what to eat. It had been a while since I had been here so I wasn't sure what to order, I remembered so many amazing dishes that I didn't know where to start.

"What are you guys getting?" Camille asked.

"I don't know! Everything looks so good!" Lee answered. "Maya, what should we try?" The whole group looked at me expectantly.

"I don't even know what _I'm_ having! But literally everything is good." I kept rummaging through the menu. But I wasn't sure if I should ask for my old time favorite or should I order the new tiramisu cake.

"Excuse me miss" a waitress said next to me with a plate in her hand. She placed it in the table. "This is for you."

"I didn't order this" I explained to her. She smiled at me.

"A man ordered it for you, he also wrote a note." She handed me a folded napkin and left the table behind.

I finally looked at the plate in front of me and my heart stopped. It was a pecan pie drizzled with white chocolate sauce, my favorite. It was from him. I stood up quickly and studied the shop looking for Lucas but he was nowhere to be found. My friends were staring at me with perplexed faces and I sat back in my chair.

"So Maya, who sent you that?" Camille said with a playful grin. The rest of them widened their eyes and nodded.

"I don't know..." I lied.

"Well? What did the note said?" Andrea asked eagerly.

Shit, I almost forgot about the note. I opened the napkin slowly, immediately recognizing the writing. It was definitely him.

 _'hey... I couldn't bring myself to say hello, but I hope this makes up for it. I'm sorry...'_

I stayed silent looking at the napkin, taking in every trace of the pen. Camille, who was sitting next to me, grabbed the note and read it aloud for the table. I quickly stole it back and read it one last time 'I'm sorry...', I kept looking at it.

"Aww, he didn't leave a number or anything?" Lee asked.

"Nope, what a loser, who does that?" Camille responded.

"That's exactly my point! Nobody does that anymore, I would've given him a chance. What do you think Maya?"

She caught me off guard staring at the little note, so I put it in my bag and returned to the conversation. "Oh, umm... I don't know... It's too cheesy for me." I said, taking a bite of my pie, it was delicious, just like I remembered.

"See!" Camille said as Lee rolled her eyes.

"I don't know guys, I'm with Lee on this one, I would kill for a guy that was that thoughtful..." Jessie stepped in. Thoughtful described Lucas perfectly, he had always been. I couldn't help but think how he was. After two years away, he is back in the city, I wonder what I would've done if he had said hello.

* * *

Unlike my first not encounter with, the second time I saw her near me I actually said hello. This happened post-operation, I had been a week out of the hospital and Billy insisted me on coming to a college party to celebrate. I was still using my cane so he picked me in his car and drove me there, he waited me as we walked to the house and made sure I had a place to sit if I got too tired.

The house was big, it was packed, people were drinking, dancing, playing 'Stacks', there was a pool outside, but I was quietly sitted on a couch of the living room, next to a couple that were definitely having a good time. Billy came back with a beer for me which I gladly took, he left me alone again, but not long after that two beautiful girls who had maybe a little too much to drink came up to me giggling.

"Are you Lucas Friar?" One of them asked me, laughing and dancing to the beat of the music.

"I am" I said, nodding my head so they could understand me over the loud music. They looked at each other and laughed some more.

"You are like a war hero" the shorter one said. "Yes, and you are like so hot" the other one finished. I don't even know what my face looked like at the moment I just wanted to get out of there. "Would you like to come with us?" This certainly caught my attention, I raised a brow and questioned the reality of the moment and if I should go with them. I looked around for Billy to see if he could rescue me or if I should just roll with this. I took my cane and got off the couch with a small sting in my abdomen, when I straighten myself was when I caught a glimpse of her. It happened very fast, I saw her just for a second but I knew it had been her. This time I had to find her.

"Dude, what are you doing?" Billy came quickly to my side. "Who are them?" He said pointing to the waiting drunk girls.

"I'm sorry ladies, my friend and I have to go somewhere else, but thank you for the offer." They left the room without a care in the world.

"What was that? What offer?" Billy asked confused. But I didn't have time to explain I had to go and look for Maya, before she left the party.

"Maya is here" I told him.

"Oh man, I had no idea she would come."

"I need to talk to her" I said, taking my cane and heading towards the hall I had seen her go through.

"What? You are going to talk to your ex? Are you drunk?" He asked me, checking my pupils in the process.

"No, man" I pushed him away and kept walking "This is something I need do". He nodded and stayed behind as I made my way through a crowd of drunk people.

"Yo, you're that dude who got shot! Awesome!" I heard someone yell at me, a couple of people asked me to take a picture with them. I moved as fast as I could, but my breathing would harden and I had to stop and take a break. When I entered the kitchen she was fixing herself a drink. She looked so hot, she was wearing shorts so I could she those legs that went on for miles, her hair was messy and I loved it. I was speechless and thought about turning around and leave, but I couldn't do that again. I took a deep breath and went for it.

* * *

"Maya?" A familiar voice said behind me, all the little hairs in the back of my neck stood up. I slowly turned around, my eyes confirming my fear, it felt like a ghost was standing in front of me. The last time I had seen him was in the hospital, laying on a bed, half dead. I felt the sudden urge to hug him, but that was probably the alcohol in my system speaking. What was he doing here? I then noticed he was supporting himself on a wooden cane and some concern invaded me.

"Lucas" was what I managed to say, even though I was thinking of a million other things to say.

"Hi" he said, with a half smile. He had bags under his eyes, he looked tired, so he probably wasn't sleeping well or the meds were making him sleepy. But if he was on meds what was he doing drinking in a party.

"Hey..." I awkwardly responded. "What are your doing here?"

"Billy brought me..." He scratched the back of his head, clearly uncomfortable by the situation. I noticed he had a small bandage in his bicep, maybe I stared a bit much because he covered it with the sleeve of his shirt again.

"You look great." I felt the need to tell him, he lifted his eyes to meet mine, he had that hypnotizing look in them, where I could feel myself falling, getting lost in his thoughts.

"Thanks." He said with a full smile, I don't know what was so debilitating about him, his scent, his eyes, his low voice, that smile, that made my legs weak. "I saw you and um... My mom... She told me that you visited me at the hospital... And I just wanted to thank you, I uh.. I appreciate it."

"No, of course. Uh... You really scared me." I said, looking back at him, he clenched his jaw and swallowed hard. I had a zip of my drink and he leaned back on the counter, using his hand as support.

"I'm sorry..." he said after some seconds of silence, looking directly into my eyes.

"You don't need to say sorry." I replied.

"But I do." I knew that he was answering to my previous comment, but I also knew him too well to understand that he meant to ask for forgiveness for everything. I wasn't mad at him, not anymore, but a part of me wanted to be, because being angry at him was easier than admitting to myself that I still felt the same way when I was around him. I remained on my feet, looking back at him, without a clue of what to say.

* * *

"Hey Maya! Are you here?... Oh, sorry! I didn't know you were busy." A guy came saying into the kitchen.

"David!" Maya answered, my heart felt heavy and tainted by a shade of jealousy. "This is Lucas" she said. I turned to him with the help of my cane and stretched his hand.

"Hi Lucas, wait... _the_ Lucas that got shot?"

"David!" Maya spat with a dangerous look in her eyes.

"Oh, sorry" David replied and took a step back. I told him it was fine and an awkward atmosphere settled in the kitchen. "Maya we have to go, Camile is here."

"Oh, okay, I'll be there in a sec" He nodded and left the room. "I'm sorry about him, he is just a friend from college." She made a pause and looked at her shoes really quick. Am I supposed to say something? She lifted her head and looked at me again "I should go, they're waiting for me."

"Yeah, sure" I smiled at her "Bye, see you later."

She left the room for a second, then her head appeared in the door frame. "Thanks for the pie" she said before leaving the party. I laughed for myself and felt a relieve in my chest. She wanted to make it clear that David was _just a friend_ and she liked the pie thing. I couldn't stop smiling for the rest of the party.

* * *

Another chapter gone! Thanks for reading, comment, follow, like, if you like!


	6. Chapter 6

Hello guys, long time no see (you'll get that later). This last months of last year took a heavy toll on me, sorry for being so absent. At least I bring two more chapters of this story, the reason I took so long was lack of inspiration and I'M STARTING A NEW STORY, I'm very excited for this one, I already have the first chapter but I'm not dure if I should uploaded now or wait until I'm done with this story. Your advice is greatly appreciated.

-AGA-xx

* * *

ROCKY START. CHAPTER 6

* * *

"Waiting for a text, honey?" My mom asked from across the table, taking a sip of her coffee, watching me expectantly.

"Umm... Nothing important, just checking on my email." I said, locking my phone and returning to my toast. After a few seconds, involuntarily, I looked again at the black screen of my phone.

"You sure?" She began. "It looks to me like you are waiting for some news."

"Mom, please drop this- you know..." I was cut by the sound of a bird coming from my phone. The text bubble said it was from Riley and I felt as my heart sped up. "Breakfast was great- I'll be in my room." I stood up and headed to the door when my mom's voice was heard again.

"Let me know how he is." I remained facing backwards to her as I closed my eyes, I walked out and let go a small sigh.

As I got to my room I unlocked my phone and opened Riley's message:

 _Peaches he got out of surgery, he is stable now..._

 _ **when is he getting out?**_

 _I don't know._ _There was a complication_

 _ **what happened?**_

 _He's in a coma._

I read the small sentence over and over again, trying to make sense of it. He couldn't be in a coma, my eyes felt itchy and my heart sank low on my chest. The phone rang again.

 _Visitation hours are from 10-11 and from 14-15... You should see him._

 _ **i can't go riley**_

 _Maya, you should come_

I could feel the tears on the brink of falling down, but I kept pushing them back, I couldn't think of this. I left Riley on seen as I layed on my back on my bed, staring at the ceiling and my static fan.

It wasn't the white walls that freaked me out, neither the long dark hallways or the symmetrical floors that I always hated, it was the smell. It was such a strong smell of antiseptic that it penetrated your nose and stayed at the rim of it.

"Maya Hart!" A nurse called out and I walked to her desk. "Please sign here" I did over the line she had pointed "Ok, that's all, he's in room 506, down this hall on the left."

As I walked to his room my heart sped up and suddenly the hospital felt so cold and I felt so scared, it was all really happening. The wooden door was in front of me, I don't know why I knocked, he was in a coma, but I stepped back when the door was opened and I saw Momma Friar behind it. She was clearly tired, with puffy eyes and big bags under them. She was wearing sweatpants and her hair was in a messy bun, which also meant she was spending her nights here as well. Her face lit up when she saw me, a small smile settled on her lips and her eyes looked like she was going to cry again.

"Oh Maya" she said very relieved by her tone, she pulled me in for a hug. I had stayed strong when Riley asked me to come, I stayed strong in the waiting room, but somehow having his mother hug me like this, like she wasn't trying to comfort me, but like she was looking to be comforted, this was what broke me. Silent tears came out as I held her tightly in my arms. She grabbed my shoulders and gently pushed me away, we remained at arm's length, a gratitude on her gesture.

I cleaned away my tears "How is he?" I asked in a trembling voice, afraid of hearing the answer. She took a deep breath in, a tremor in her lip.

"It was bad, he got shot twice, one on his arm that went completely through and another in his chest." She paused, cleaned a tear that had escaped her eye and continued. "His lung was punctured, as he got to the hospital they noticed that not enough oxygen was getting to his brain so they drilled a hole in his head to relieve the pressure as they fixed his lung. The surgery was very long and..." She finally cracked a knot settling in her throat.

"They fixed his lungs... but his brain... he... they..." I rubbed her back in gently circular motions, her hands were covering her face, I looked both ways down the hall, there was no one who could see us. After a while that she put herself back together she finished her story. "They induced the coma, so his brain could rest and fix itself, but there is a big chance that he won't wake up." She couldn't stop the tears anymore and they kept coming out, she had a handkerchief with she continually used to blow her running nose. We just stood there for a few minutes as she calmed down, I had my arm around her and the other one holding her hand.

She lifted up her head and looked me in the eyes, she had green eyes just like her son, his were a little lighter and had golden spots around it, I couldn't stop myself from thinking about him when I saw them.

"Oh sweetie I just realized that you came here to see him and I've been keeping you out here the whole time listening to me cry." She squeezed my hand gently.

"You needed the visit too" I said to her "I'm glad you were here" I gave her a small smile.

"Go in there, I'll go fix myself a cup of coffee." She hugged me and then walked down the hall disappearing at the corner.

As I looked at the door panic invaded me, I was so distracted by Momma Friar that I didn't think about actually seeing him. I pushed the door open and forced myself to not look at him until I was fully inside the room with the door closed. As I turned around, I stopped breathing, scared of making any sound. He was laying in bed, a large tube was coming out of his mouth, the machines next to him beeped, keeping track of his heartbeat, the other one made a loud breathing sound that was kinda terrifying.

This was the first time I saw him in two years after he left me and broke my heart. I sat down on a stool that was positioned next to the bed and I watched him, he looked just like he was sleeping, I remembered that face very well.

"Hey..." I said in a low voice. "Long time no see..." I awkwardly chuckled, not very sure of what could _I_ say.

"I really don't know what to tell you... This still feels unreal to me, you were always the strong one between the two of us, even though everyone thinks it was me." Tears came back to my eyes. "You were the one putting me back together every time I broke down and now you're here and there is nothing I can do to fix you."

I was sniffling constantly, my mouth trembling and my voice about to crack.

"You know it's funny, last time we talked I was settled that it would be really the last time. I was furious, for such a long time I was angry so I could hide the sadness and the emptiness you left me." I stopped to breathe for a second.

"I was so angry, that was the first thing that came to my mind when someone mentioned you. But when I heard about this and now that I see you here and to know that two years ago can be the last time we'll ever talk I couldn't be able to forgive myself if that happens."

"So Lucas..." I reached out for his hand "I need you to wake up... You have to come back... Please, do this for me..." I stood up and gave him a kiss on his forehead, it was interesting how he smelled like himself, the only thing that smelled different from the antiseptic was the cowboy laying down on the hospital bed, fighting for his life.

* * *

As always, thanks for reading, go follow the story and like... if you like.


	7. Chapter 7

Everything I needed to say was in the last chapter, you're getting two for being so patient, btw I wonder what happened in the party after that kiss... Coming soon

-AGA-xx

* * *

ROCKY START. CHAPTER 7

* * *

If there was something I never got used to in the city was the pace, everything in here moved so fast that sometimes it felt impossible to keep up. After moving to New York again my timing felt off, I found myself being pushed by people in the sidewalk, constant honking when I was on the wheel. Maybe I had gotten to used to the quietness of Austin, when I was on the ranch nothing could be heard except the animals in the morning, the crickets in the night, no cars, no sirens, no yelling.

Still, the noisy city had grown on me, the two years I spent away in Texas had only shown me how much.

I was walking down the street when my phone vibrated.

 _r u on ur way?_

A text from Zay, I was headed to Billy's house, we were celebrating his acceptance to law school.

 _ **yeah, why?**_

 _we need snacks, can u pick up some on the way?_

 _ **sure**_

I sent the text, I looked around to see where I was standing, I knew there must be a store just bellow the street. I looked up, the sun was coming down and everything was about to be golden, I contemplated the effect like Maya had taught me so long ago, as I was turning around a lady was coming out of a store causing me to bump into her and drop her bag.

"I'm sorry, ma'am" I said reaching down to grab the bag and give it to her.

"You should be" she spat at me, an angry look on her face, she took the bag from my hand and kept going her way. "Kids these days... With their drugs and..." I heard her murmur as she left my sight.

When I returned my eyes to the buildings the golden minutes had passed and the sky was starting to turn black. One block down I saw a small convenience store that should have just what I needed.

The store was very small, three aisles at the most, I was the only one there except the cashier man and an elderly woman that smiled at me when I came in. I grabbed some chips and a couple of dips and headed to the entrance to pay, the man did everything like he had been doing this for a long time, putting the items in a bag, giving out the change, even when he said _Have a nice day,_ it sounded a little robotic.

Just when I was about to grab my bag and go, two armed men entered the store. My heart stopped, sweat appeared in my cold hands and my breathing was unsteady.

"Put your hands up!" Me and the cashier did as they said. Their faces were covered but the second one to come in was definitely younger, by the way he held his gun it appeared like he had never shot one before. The older one was pointing the gun at the cashier guy.

"Take all your money out and put it on a bag" he screamed, I watched every move the employee did, the attacker was nervously looking around the store, which was their biggest mistake as he missed how the cashier man pressed a panic button, he gave me a look, terror in his eyes.

"Hands!" The young one screamed, pulling my attention, his gun pointing at the elderly woman "Why... why aren't your hands up?" The woman clearly was in shock and couldn't move. "I'm talking to you! The hands! Put the hands up" She was crying, her legs trembling

"Leave her alone!" Escaped my mouth, I swallowed hard realizing my own mistake. Two guns were now looking at me, my heart raced, afraid of moving anything, I stood there like a statue. The big one narrowed his eyes, checking me from my feet to my face. He came close to me, the barrel getting close to my body.

"Give me all your money too" he said. I slowly took my wallet out, my eyes were glued to the gun and the man holding it. Behind him, the woman had started to cry.

"Shut up! Stop crying!" The young man yelled, making the lady to cry harder. I clenched my jaw to stop me from saying something to him about the frightened lady.

"C'mon, hurry up" I was brought back, my hands trembling, a layer of sweat covering my forehead. If we could stall them a little longer, the police was on their way.

"If you don't shut up, I'll shoot you! I swear I'll shoot you!" The other kept going, he was too nervous and his finger was on the trigger, at any moment he could freak out and pull it by mistake, I couldn't wait anymore, I had to do something. I was standing next to the wine bottles, I had played baseball my entire life. Sirens were faint in the distance, just one minute.

"Your money, hurry!" I took all my bills out with a trembling hand, together they made roughly a hundred dollars. I threw them at the floor. "Idiot!" He said, kneeling to pick them up.

The next seconds my entire life changed. In one swift move I let go of my wallet, grabbed a bottle of wine with both hands and swung it as fast as I could until it met his head. It all looked like it was happening in slow motion. The bottle exploded against his head, glass flying everywhere, the man dropping unconscious to the floor. What I didn't counted on was on his sidekick to react so quickly, the sirens were seconds away. Without thinking he fired his gun at me three times.

It's interesting getting shot, it feels hot when the bullet cuts through your skin. I felt the sting in my arm, but before I could turn my eyes to see the wound I felt one in my chest. A few inches below my left nipple, this one took my breath away, like someone had kicked me on my stomach. I saw the cops getting off their car and I saw as the world spun over me. I hit the ground with a loud thud, I felt how the blood ran out of my body, hot and thick dripping on the floor. I could hear my heart in my ears, my breathing was quick, like each time it was harder to take the air in; it felt like needless in my chest every time I breathed.

"We need an ambulance, I repeat, there was a shooting, we need medical support." A cop was over me, I screamed as he pressed on my chest, everything going black. "Stay with me, son!" Was the last thing I heard.

* * *

I was late, my class had taken too long, because the teacher had decided to tell the class all about his trip to Paris and how beautiful it was, all about the buildings and the parks and the food and the city at night and the men, we just had to _know_ about the men. Now I would have to focus on _beautiful architectural details_ for next week. I was on my way to see Riley, it was the first time I would be able to actually see her this month and I was late.

I ran into the subway station, my pocket buzzing for the fourth time in a row, but I knew it was Riley and I knew she was calling to know where I was and to lecture me about punctuality and I just wasn't in the spirit of being lectured tonight.

"Did you hear what happened today?" I heard a lady ask the person she was talking to on the phone. "I know!... So young, yes... A true hero...He was shot" She kept going her conversation as I walked out of the car and climbed the stairs skipping two at a time.

"Friar" I thought I heard someone say behind me. I turned around, but no Lucas or any of the Friars I knew were on site. I shook of a bad feeling bubbling up on my chest and headed to Riley's apartment.

As I passed a electronics shop, the twelve screens on the window were showing the same news station. I gave no importance to it, until the tip of my eye caught it this time, _Friar_. It couldn't be a coincidence, the bad feeling on my chest just growing larger. I retraced my steps and stood in front of the store watching the news. Down in the headlines I could read: _**Lucas Friar stops a robbery**_. My heart stopped, reading the sentence over and over again every time it passed on the screens. The news changed from 'Weather' to 'Local events', I couldn't hear what the lady was saying but I could understand a couple of words coming out of her mouth.

 _Street. Stop. Twice. Hero. Head. Footage._

My concentration was taken away from the window as Riley's tone played on my pocket. I grabbed it and answered.

"Hello" I said, getting back to the TV's.

"Maya, it's Lucas..."

My mouth fell open and tears were hanging on my chin when I saw a little black and white copy of him dropping to the floor on twelve different screens. Riley always loved calling Lucas a western hero and he loved that everyone believed he was, today the entire city of New York would think so. Except a little blonde who just wished for him to be back in Texas, alive and well.

* * *

That's it for today, follow... ah you know what goes next.


	8. Chapter 8

Hey guys, new chapter! This story is going to end soon, thank you for taking your time an read my stuff it means a lot to me.

I have a one-shot I'm about to finish and another big story I've been wanting to publish. Like, follow, comment, review, share, do whatever you want!

-AGA-xx

* * *

ROCKY START. CHAPTER 8

* * *

I saw my ex falling in love in the internet.

We had almost a year broken up and this break up fucked us both. It had been my fault, but she decided to break us up, I guess my plan worked, I just didn't know how much suffering was to come after separating. I'd like to think it was harder on me, but I know I destroyed her, 'she cried herself to sleep' Riley said to me a week after our break up.

I screamed against my pillow until my throat hurt so badly I couldn't talk the next day or take it off with a punching bag until my knuckles were bleeding and the pain from my hands covered the one in my chest. I also cried, I won't lie. Still I refused to admit she was in pain, because I didn't want to live in a world where she couldn't smile or be happy, specially if it was my fault. But I kept repeating to myself 'she's fine', everyday, I wasn't expecting the day I actually saw her happy again was with another man.

I decided to start checking her social media, just out of curiosity, I thought about her regularly and I cared a lot for her, I started to check her Facebook page everyday, trying to keep up with her life.

Their first photograph together was taken at a party.

At least I can assume it was a party from the red Solo cup she held and her tipsy half-smile — the same one I used to tease her about. His fingers were wrapped around her waist and as I stared at my computer screen I tried not to think about how I used to do the same.

Maybe they're just she know him while we were dating?I wonder if they spent the night together.

I'm not allowed to care,I reminded myself. But I did. I slammed my laptop shut. I was done torturing myself for one night. I dreamed about her that night.

 _It was winter. Dirty snow lined the parking lot of the 7-Eleven where we used to buy our booze from the guy Maya knew in there. As we leaned against the car I could see how she was trembling, her jaw clenched as the cold spreaded through her body._

 _I exhaled purposefully onto her, my cloud of hot breath drifting towards her._

 _Like any dreamscape, it wasn't quite right. The plotline didn't make sense. Why were we standing outside rather than walking in? Why were we driving my mother's car instead of mine? Why wasn't she wearing a jacket?_

 _Why were we still together?_

 _She took her hands out of her gloves and put them under my shirt, finding their way to my chest. I winced, but then smiled at her._

 _"I'm just here to warm your extremities, aren't I?" I said._

 _"Maybe," she said, grinning._

 _I woke up cold, searching for her in my bed._

That brief moment after waking was always the worst. That moment when I felt like the dream was reality — like maybe we never broke up at all. That moment when I willed myself back to sleep, wishing nothing more than to return to her hand on my chest. That moment where I remembered so easily what it felt like to love and to be loved that it seemed impossible it wasn't true anymore.

I grabbed my phone from my nightstand and started scrolling through her Twitter. I needed to be with her, in whatever capacity I could. As I read the words on my screen I could hear her voice so clearly. I imagined her laughing at her own joke before posting it and smiled at the thought. I could hear her voice so easily that for a moment my bed didn't feel quite so empty.

Two months after the first one, there was another photo: her and the guy from the party at a baseball game. My stomach twisted as I realized he was destined to become a recurring character in her life. I scrolled through the photos of them together, each holding a drink. I wondered if he liked sports like I was. I wondered if she remarked on the tightness of the player's pants, or discussed the blood alcohol content of the people around her, like she. always did when I took her to other games. I wondered if they were having fun.

Seeing them together, with their easy smiles and full cups, it still didn't register that she had moved on.

I couldn't digest that she could fall in love with someone else while I still loved her. At that point, I didn't understand love could be one-sided like that. I couldn't imagine she told him the things she told me, or looked at him the same way.

I pictured her lying in bed, staring at the ceiling, wishing the dude lying next to her was me. It was easier to imagine she was sleeplessly staring at walls, searching for me in her bed, than to believe the truth: She wasn't thinking of me at all.

The internet told me a lot about him. It told me he was good looking and smart. It told me he was social and he seemed kind. I wanted to hate him, but I couldn't.

He took pictures with children and smiled wholeheartedly in photos. He laughed in a way that seemed authentic.

I looked at his profile and then went back to my own, attempting to step outside of myself and act as an unbiased judge between the two of us. I looked at our profiles and saw all the things we had in common, and all the things we did not. My face was more angular and sharper than his, my hair a little less blonde. My smile didn't come as easily, except in the photos in which I was with her. He volunteered more than I did, but I seemed to get outdoors more. He looked like he came from money, and I looked like I was living like most college students on budgeted grocery lists. We had our differences but we also had our overarching similarities: We both loved our family, our friends, and the same girl.

Months passed and I watched them tag each other in photos and their relationship status change. I cringed as they exchanged banter on Twitter and speculated what their jokes were about. I noticed when he took a photo with her mother. I saw her wearing the necklace I bought her as she stood next to him on a vacation they took together.

I saw their relationship go the places ours had gone and to places it had not.

I wondered if they fought. I wondered if the things she did that annoyed me bothered him in the same way. I wondered how he appreciated her art and if he had more knowledge about it than I did, maybe he could compliment it in a way I never could.

My heart sank lower every insta, every snap, every update, but at least she was happy, she smiled more and I noticed she was painting again, that was my only relief.

I could have stopped looking at any time, but it was addicting. I wanted to know what happened next. I wanted to see if it worked out. Or maybe I wanted to see if it didn't.

Despite my self-inflicted torture, I didn't reach out to her, she had made it very clear.

She reminded me what it felt like to love someone, and I liked that part of myself.

We were both spiraling off in vastly different directions, but I still felt an inexplicable pull towards her. It was nice having her be so accessible, even if she wasn't.

I didn't fancy myself a stalker, though maybe that's what I was — leering through the virtual window of someone else's happy life. I guess I just thought if I could see her on that 13-inch computer screen, then maybe she was still with me in a way, maybe I wasn't alone, maybe I was loved. Maybe she was looking, too.

* * *

Thanks for reading, go and like... if you like!


	9. Chapter 9

Hey, we are almost at the end, I think the next chapter will be my last, but after that I'll publish another story. I'm also writing another one-shot, if you haven't read the first one I wrote you can check it out.

Thanks for coming this far.

-AGA-

* * *

ROCKY START. CHAPTER 8

 _"Maya... It's me again- please answer me. I need to explain... please... I need to hear your..."_

"Maya, you have to stop listening to them." Riley said, opening the curtains of her room. I covered myself with her blankets, in the dark everything seemed like a bad dream, where I could wake up and all would be okay.

"Close them" I said. I could hear her sigh heavily and the mechanic sound of the rails. I poked my head out, she was standing in front of me with her hands on her hip, trying to look very serious.

"It's the third day you've spent in my bed, Peaches..."

"Riley" I cut her off, she was going to start a sermon on moving forward and I really didn't want to hear it. "I can't..." I was thinking of so many things to say to her, but they all got cut in my throat. I was going to cry again and all I could think about was him hugging me, telling me it was all going to be well, because that's what he always did when I cried.

Riley came close to me, but I turned around and closed my eyes. I wasn't being fair to her, she had gone above and beyond trying to comfort me, letting me stay with her and bringing me food, keeping me company, hugging me at nights, but she didn't understand that at the moment it wasn't her who I wanted, I wanted my boyfriend, I wanted the love of my life next to me. I'm sorry Riles, I hope you can forgive me for this, I promise I'll make it up to you.

* * *

 _"You've reached Maya Hart, if I didn't answer it's for a reason_. Voice mail, again. I didn't know what to do, I had 30 unread messages from Farkle and 42 from Zay, plus all the calls I had ignored. I didn't want to talk to them, not right now, I just wanted to talk to Maya, maybe if I could explain to her. I was sitting in my car in front of her house, I had spent the night there. I was dialing again when someone tapped on my window. It was Maya's mom with a plate covered in foil and what appeared to be a mug of coffee. I rolled my window down.

"Ms. Hart, I'm sorry... I'm just waiting for Maya..." I said, looking down at the pedals.

"I know Lucas... you must be hungry" she said lifting the plate. "You've been here since last night and I don't think you've eaten anything."

I gave her a small smile and took the plate and placed the mug on my dashboard.

"Thank you Ms. Hart." I swallowed hard, trying to find something to say.

"I don't know what happened between you two, Lucas. It looks bad and I want to know if you can fix it."

"If I could just talk to her and explain my side of the story..."

She looked down at the pavement and then back at me.

"She hasn't come home." Oh, God. She's with Riley, I'm an idiot, of course she would be there, that's why Riley hasn't texted me anything. I closed my eyes, trying to think of what to do, I just needed to explain.

* * *

 _"How is she?"_ I could hear Farkle asking Riley outside of the room.

" _She's sleeping now, thankfully, she didn't sleep anything for the first two days."_ Then some seconds of silence. " _Do you know anything about Lucas?"_

" _Last time Zay spoke to him, he was heading to Maya's house."_

 _"Do you know what happened?"_ Riley asked, whispering.

 _"She hasn't told you?"_ Farkle responded.

 _"No, she's too upset."_ I just couldn't bring myself to tell her what he had done.

 _"This one's bad"_ Farkle said.

 _"Yeah, I'm scared of what is going to happen."_

 _"We just gotta be there for them."_ He paused. " _I'm going to see Zay now, we are going to look for him."_

" _Okay, I'll call you later._ " A kiss sound that fell heavy on my chest, then I hear the knob twisting and I close my eyes.

* * *

I had parked my car and come down to my favorite bench in the water front, where I could see the ferry come and go. My phone kept ringing, it would die soon, I had drowned the battery trying to call her. I closed my eyes, I heard the horn on the ferry just leaving the terminal, the noise was comforting, I kept hearing her voice yelling " _Leave_!"

"Farkle! He's here!" I heard Zay call, I opened my eyes and saw him run towards me, a skinny tall guy a little behind him. "We've been looking for you everywhere man, why won't you answer the freaking phone? I mean, not even once! We were worried sick!"

"You just had to answer the phone and tell us you were alive!" Farkle said catching up with us. I kept looking at the boat, a knot in my throat.

"She's with Riley." Zay said, sitting by my side.

"I know." I said. "How is she?"

"I don't know, she was asleep when I went to see her." Farkle responded, sitting on the other side. "How are you?"

I couldn't answer that without crying, so I just looked down at the pavement. Zay patted my back.

"What happened between you?" He asked, searching my eyes.

"I fucked up."

He waited a moment before talking again. "Did you cheat on her?"

"No." I responded.

* * *

"I don't care about who's right, Riley!" I dropped my hands to my sides, exasperated. "I just need to know that you're on my side."

She closed her eyes for a second and then sat down next to me, she grabbed my hand and looked me in the eyes.

"Always."

I put my head on her shoulder and sighed softly.

"I'm tired, Riles." I said, tears prickling my eyes again.

"I know, Peaches."

"What do I do know?" I asked.

"You should talk to him." She said stroking my hair.

"What if I don't want to forgive him?"

"You should try and listen to what he has to say." She said.

"I'm not ready for that."

"He obviously feels terrible, Maya, maybe if you talked about what happened."

"I just feel so angry, at him, at myself for falling for his shit. I want to stop." I began crying again, the tears seemed never-ending, I had been crying for three days straight.

"Then we'll stop." She cleaned my face with her hands. "Are you sure?" She asked after a pause.

"I don't want to feel like this again..." Was all I could manage to say between sobs.

"You won't, I promise." She said firmly.

* * *

"Hello?"

"Oh God, Maya! You answered! Please just let me explain what happened, I—"

"Lucas! It's Riley..." She said on the other side. "Maya is taking a bath."

"Can I talk to her?" I asked in desperation.

"No." She said and hanged up.

Fuck, I dialed again and again Riley's voice received me.

"Lucas stop calling her and stop leaving her messages, it's doing no good for her."

"Riley I just need to fucking explain to her what happened." She hanged up again.

I was getting frustrated, angry, I felt like I wanted to hit a wall, but I dialed again.

"I'm sorry for getting mad." I said, the second she took the call. "It's just... I need to talk to her..."

"You lost that privilege when you lied to her." She said, I closed my eyes and clenched my jaw.

"Riley, I know you are on her side but don't you think you should understand my side too, before you make a decision on who is right?"

"This isn't about who is right, Lucas, you hurt her and you hurt her really bad, she's my best friend and if you hurt her that means you're hurting me too."

"I thought I was also your friend." I said.

"You are, but you know it's different than what Maya and I have."

"Riley, as your friend, I'm just asking you to let me talk to her."

"No, Lucas."

"Why not?" I asked desperately.

"Because..." She sighed heavily. "Because she cried herself to sleep and you did that." She hanged up, my heart caught in my throat. I grabbed one of the pillows next to me and started screaming, tears streaming down my face.

* * *

 _You have no new messages. To check your box of recent messages press 1._

 _1._

 _You have 47 saved messages. To play them press 1, to delete them..._

 _1._

 _Playing all messages._

 _Message 1: January 14th, 2016. 9:23 p.m._

 _"Hey Maya, it's me, call me when you get this."_

 _Message 2: January 14th, 2016. 9:45 p.m._

 _"Okay, I know you're mad, but if we talked you could understand, call me."_

The phone started to vibrate in my ear, when I checked the screen a picture of him smiling was looking at me, I had taken that one on my bed, he had just woken up. Something new fills me, it's anger, no—worse, it rage. I can hear everything he said that night and it just makes my blood boil. I throw my phone against the wall.

After a while I can see it from the bed, I stand up and reach for it, on of the corners of the screen is broken but I still turn it on again. He calls again, he just won't understand, I answer his call for the first time.

"Hello?" He says on the other side. "Riley?" I don't respond, trying to deny how much I missed his voice. "Maya?" He finally says.

"It's you, oh my God, Maya! It's really you!" I have the urge to hang up, but I'm curious of what he is going to say. "Maya, if you could let me explain to you... Nothing happened Maya!" And my heart beats fast, the blood running too my head in raged. I want to stop this.

"Don't call me again..." I say, almost in a whisper, though I'm sure he listened to me.

"Maya, please..." He's desperate.

"I hate you..." Once it slips my mouth, it's so easy to say it. "I hate you, I hate you, I hate you!" Each time my voice getting louder.

"Maya..."

"It's true, I hate you. You hear me?" I feel like a train that's going too fast to be stopped. "I fucking hate you! I just want you to leave."

"Please don't do this."

"Leave me alone, I don't want to hear you or talk to you, I don't even want to see you, ever again!" I screamed that last part, but I'm tired and it feels so good getting everything out of my chest.

"Let me explain." He says, his voice cracking, but I don't care anymore, I stopped listening to him.

"I'm serious, I don't want to see you again, just leave, I don't care, leave so I can get out of this room." I pause, taking a big breath in. "Lucas, if you care about me, leave..." I hang up.

 _You have 47 saved messages. To play them press 1, to delete them press..._

 _2._

 _Messages deleted._


	10. Chapter 10

Hey guys, this is the last chapter of this story, it was always meant to end here and then I'd publish a one-shot of what happens after the first chapter, but that it's not finished yet and i want to start publishing my new story. Thank you if you got this far and gave me a chance, I hope to see you in my next story. -AGA-

* * *

ROCKY START. CHAPTER 9

The Texans are on the last quarter, the game in a turn of events has been insane, they are head to head. I'm on the edge of my couch, Maya is sitting on the other side, watching me, though she was never a football person. She has been cold since I got here. Oh no, foul, damn it, we are 15 yards behind. Maya sighs, she is going to kill me if I don't ask what's up.

"Maya what's wrong?" I ask her, after I notice it's the third time she looks at me with anger.

"How can you act like everything is fine?" She asks me, but I don't know what she's talking about. Did I forgot to do something? Shit, was tonight date night?

"What?" I ask, frowning.

"You lied to me." She says, I see rage in her eyes, my heart starts beating fast.

"What are you talking about?" I turn the TV off, because this is serious and I know it.

"You know exactly what I'm talking about." She points at me.

"No, I don't. You are acting crazy."

"Who is Leah?" My heart stops, my jaw falls. "Oh so now you are silent, who the fuck is Leah and you better answer me before I storm out of this place."

I remain silent, but she stands up and I take her wrist to stop her.

* * *

"She's a friend." He tells me, he dares tell me that, like I don't know anything. I scoff at his answer, my blood boiling.

"Oh, just a friend?"

"I didn't cheat on you, if that what you're thinking." My heart aches when he says those words.

"Who is she?!"

"She's from my culture class." He says, but I don't care about that.

"And what is your relationship with her?" I ask her, but he looks at the floor. "I swear to god Lucas, you better tell me what the fuck is going on?"

"We just talk." He's avoinding the answer I want, this pressure in my chest is killing me, I feel tears rolling down my cheeks.

"You just talk?" I clean my tears away, he is looking at the floor and it just enrages me more. "You just talk?!"

* * *

"You've been talking to her for months!" She yells at me, my heart sinks slowly with shame and pain and sadness.

"It's not..."

"Don't you dare!" She stops me.

"I wasn't..."

"Don't you dare lie to me another second." Her voice breaks at the end, which brings tears to my eyes, I close them to keep them from falling.

"Maya..."

"You've been lying to me for months..." She's crying and I don't know what to do.

"I never did anything."

"You didn't..." She scoffs. "You practically have a relationship with her!"

"That's not true."

"Oh, you're calling _me_ a lier now?" She steps back.

"No, that's not..."

"She said she loves you!" She throws her arms to her sides.

"Maya..." I walk closer to her, maybe she can listen to me.

"Two months ago."

"Listen to me..." I try to reach her hands, try to calm her down.

"Two fucking months ago!" She pushes my hands away.

"Let me explain." I beg.

"I saw the chats, Lucas." She says, taking a deep breath in. "You talk to her every time we are not together, which recently has become normal. She says I love you every time you say goodnight..." She cries again.

"And you..." She points at me with a shaky hand.

She grabs her bag and heads for the door.

"Maya, let me explain to you." I say desperately.

"I can't..." She says, sniffing. "I've been reading your messages, and I just can't deal with this anymore." She opens the front door, but I stop her.

"Don't leave, let's talk about this, let me fix it." I step closer to her.

"I thought if we spent more time together you'd stop, but I saw the hours, Lucas... you talked to her when I was sleeping." She cleans her face. "You gave up on us and that's what hurts me the most."

"I haven't, Maya please let's talk about this, I'll tell you everything. Please, baby, I love _you_."

She closes her eyes and looks up, the tears drop down from her chin to her chest.

"Yesterday you replied _'me too'_."

She turns around and leaves. I sit back in the couch, tears in my cheeks and a knot in my throat. When I turn the TV on I find out that the Texans lost their game, and I lost her.


End file.
